“We wanted to do something really different with The House of the Dead: OVERKILL.  With SEGA we’ve been able to create a fresh look for the franchise. I think you’ll agree it’s like nothing you’ve seen before on Wii.”Bradley Crooks, Studio Head at Headstrong Game

The trailer emulates the style of a 70’s b-grade horror flick (think Grindhouse) looks like a great addition to Sega’s House of the Dead franchise.  Look for this to be released on Nintendo Wii next year.

“Paying homage to the pulp horror comics and films that inspired generations of gore fans, The House of the Dead: OVERKILL will expose gamers to a brand-new fleshy rollercoaster ride of revolting dismemberment. This is the hardcore Wii title you’ve been waiting for.”
Gary Knight, European Marketing Director at SEGA Europe

I recently picked up a copy of Alone in the Dark and to my surprise I have found it quite entertaining. Before the games release in June I actually had anticipated it’s release for two reason - survival horror is one of my favorite genres (the original 1992 release invented the genre) and I really enjoyed Eden Games last release (Test Drive: Unlimited). Of course my expectations diminished greatly after reading the mostly mediocre and negative reviews that rolled in. If you were like me you may have missed out on a great game.

Atari released Alone in the Dark on multiple platforms - Wii, 360 and PC (with a PS3 version due later this year) so please keep in mind the following are my impressions of the Xbox 360 version.

The game has a medium learning curve and except for a few times early in the game while I was getting the hang of it, I actually found the controls for each mode of play to be intuitive and well thought out for the most part. You might consider them quirky since some of the actions are unique to this title. I recall the classic Alone in the Dark forced you to use the keyboard and I remember that I preferred to use a joystick or gamepad for control, but once I familiarized myself with the controls they actually worked surprisingly well.

I found the variety of gameplay elements to be well done - I like the realistic physics and detailed character interactions. Eden introduces a unique inventory system that allows you to access your inventory without pausing the game. Thankfully you can combine items in logical ways and having to manage the limited space inside your jacket does make it more realistic. Keeping Edward from bleeding to death by spraying medicine to areas injured and having to apply bandages made certain parts of the game quite intense. Action sequences played well and I liked how the camera switches to over the shoulder Resident Evil 4 style when you fire your gun.

The driving in the game was a bit of a disappointment. The instruments on the dashboard surprisingly didn’t function while driving and the segments themselves were quite linear.

The characters voice acting quality varies widely, but for a video game is adequate. I also found the story to be pretty good - not nearly as good as the originals Lovecraftian goodness but certainly comparable to the typical Silent Hill and Resident Evil fare. I also noticed that those who observed me playing the game appreciated the recap of key events and liked how when I finished an episode it was like it they were watching a show on TV.

I didn’t skip any sections via the DVD style index that turns each level into a episodes split into evenly spaced sections although I was very tempted to during a couple of the segments. Having this option available makes the game even more accessible and should help lower frustration levels for most and is a welcome feature.

Rockstar Games has officially announced the release of Grand Theft Auto IV for PC this September in North America (September 18th) and Europe (September 21st).

“We are very excited to be releasing the PC version of Grand Theft Auto IV. The whole team is dedicated to bringing an amazing gaming experience to the PC. The game looks and plays beautifully on PC and we can’t wait for people to play it.”Sam Houser, Rockstar Games

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Nintendo, hey Nintendo! It’s me. GlossGreen. Remember me? We used to play together as kids. Remember the time we used to play Zelda? No? How about Metroid? You don’t remember that either? I know, it was a long time ago, but you seem different these days. It seems like you’re trying to be someone else these days. What happened to you? I remember first meeting you way back in grade school. You were there to pick up the pieces after the whole Atari thing. Damn E.T., why did it have to be that bad? Luckily, you were there to swoop in and pick up the pieces. Seeing you in the store for the first time, I think it was a Sears, I remember being excited (as only a grade schooler could). I used to spend hours looking at the box art of games, heck, I even thought R.O.B. looked cool. I know, I was young and didn’t know better. Playing the games were great, I could actually tell the difference between my character and a rock. That was a huge improvement over the other guys stuff. We spent hours and hours having fun, and then things got better.

A few years later, you got a slight bit more mature and grew a tad bit bigger. You got smarter and became able to do some pretty cool things. Zelda looked better, Mario could do more things, and Samus had more toys. Those were the good old days, some say the best. I have many good memories playing through those years, but changes were on the wind. A new media for games was on the horizon and you tried to join in. CDs were going to be the next big thing for games. They were cheaper, had more storage, and hell, people just thought they were cool. Too bad you made the wrong choice.

I still stuck by you…for a while. I didn’t care that you still used cartridges while the other systems started using CDs. You still had some great games. All the usual suspects were there, and some new ones too. I spent many, many hours playing Rogue Squadron, my favorite Star Wars game to date. Unfortunately, all was not well. At the time, I was starting a family and had a job that didn’t pay so well, and there in lies the rub. New games for you ended up costing nearly $70. I couldn’t believe it. Why the heck were you so expensive? I know things weren’t going well for you against your former partner, but did you really have to cost so damn much? Were you trying to alienate all your friends? Let me tell you, price gauging is not cool. After that things got worse.

I didn’t even recognize you the next time you hit the spotlight. You went from a cherished family friend to…a toy. That’s what I thought. Sure, Resident Evil looked pretty good, but a cube shape? With a handle? Let’s get one thing straight, you were not a portable system. The handle was just stupid. What really got me was the fact that you didn’t learn your lesson from the last time. Hello, remember the CD fiasco? Anyone? Why the miniature discs? That’s just like a racehorse on the track with a broken leg. You can get some mileage out of it, but it won’t go far. I an not ashamed to admit that I turned my back on you then. I thought you’d be done for sure.

Revolution. Now that was a cool name and it showed that you were going to try something new. I was interested, even though I’d sworn you off the last time. You had some big plans and ideas that really impressed me. But you let me down again. What did you choose instead? Wii. What the hell were you thinking? Underwhelming hardware with a stupid name. Looking back at it now, I’d say you were in it for the money. Go cheap with the hardware and take advantage of everyone with garbage software. Even with the occassional Mario, Zelda, or Metroid game you have still lost me. I know you are making money hand over fist these days, but let’s be honest. How long do you think this can possibly last? I can see it now, death by shovelware. With games like Gingerbread Man, who needs enemies?

Things aren’t over yet, I know you are only half way into your second year and there is still plenty of time to fix things. First, get quality back. Remember the Nintendo Seal of Quality? I took heart knowing that you actually looked at the games that developers were trying to get on your system. Sure, the occassional bad game made it through, but nothing like the old 2600 days. Nothing like an E.T. to be seen. Second, get some games that people like me would actually play. Wii Sports? No. Cooking Mama? Hell no. Ging…Stop right there. You see my point? Remember the old days. Strive for excellent, fun games. Don’t just do it because you can. I know Nintendo could slap the Wii name on a rock and sell millions of them, but it doesn’t mean they should.

With Bioware developing the new Sonic RPG for the Nintendo DS this is one title to keep a close eye on. Recently IGN awarded Sonic Chronicles as runner-up to the Best Nintendo DS RPG at E3, if you are curious which game was given top honors, it was Square’s Chrono Trigger DS. Sonic Chronicles is due in stores this coming Fall, in the meantime you can watch the latest trailer for the game here.

With Sony recently adding Warhawk to their Greatest Hits line there are many new players heading online for the first time.

Since the game has been available almost a year new players will inevitably find themselves competing with opponents that have been perfecting their skills since last Halloween. To help aid the frustration that may incur, Brady Games has made the following training video available.

If you are new to Warhawk you really should watch this video it’s got tons of great tips that make your online play much more enjoyable.

Creative Director Jens Andersen shares a preview of DC Universe Online out at Comic Con earlier today. This is the same walkthrough of SOE’s MMO that you would get if you attended the event.

Here are the latest screenshots:

Hey guys,

Lots of confusion thanks to the Qore announcement.

Here’s the deal. We are running a Public Beta, and you will have many ways to get in. The best way which will give you the earliest access to the beta will involve a pre-order program that should be announced soon, (for those of you who don’t know what pre-ordering is, you essentially reserve your copy with five dollars down, and that five dollars will go towards the price of the game when it releases).

For all of you folks outside of North America are up in arms because Qore is NA only, please don’t worry. This is one of many ways to get in, and we plan to make the beta available in all territories, as we need to test all servers and worldwide play.

Further details on how to get into the beta will be forthcoming.

I apologize for any confusion that has happened given the various offers beta codes. Rest assured, we understand how excited you all are to play Resistance 2, and we’re going to do our best to make sure the beta program runs as smoothly as possible.

If you have questions, post below. I’ll try to answer over the course of today.James Stevenson, Insomniac Games

In the meantime watch Resistance 2 footage from E3 hosted by Ted Price of Insomniac Games sharing details of the game for European fans.

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Gamersyde was able to finish the level of MegaMan 9 that Capcom had available for play at this years E3.

If you want to try this yourself you will have to wait to wait to play MegaMan 9 at home, it’s becomes available for download via WiiWare this September for your Nintendo Wii.

You can watch the 2:45 of MegaMan 9 as captured by Gamersyde at E3 2008 below.

Here is compilation of XNA community created games that are featured this year at the XNA Gamefest that is being held in right now in Seattle, Washington.  The XNA Gamefest will also be held this year in London, England August 7th and Tokyo, Japan September 4th and 5th.

Prices will be set at 200 MS points for games 50MB and under, with larger games priced at 400 or 800 MS points. Creators will receive 70% of the revenue generated mailed to them via check on a quarterly basis, though Microsoft will be randomly promoting XNA games, for which they will take an extra 10-20% based on traffic generated.

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